War conflicts throughout history have had many protagonists who gave their lives to save those of their companions. The protagonist of this story, whom his companions from the battalion of the Royal Rifles of Canada they would not hesitate to qualify as «man's best friend «, his name was Gander and he was a dog of the Newfoundland breed.
pal , which was the name of our dog before acquiring his nom de guerre, was the pet of a family from Gander (Canada) that, like all Newfoundlands, grew and grew until it became a beautiful specimen of almost 70 kg. If we add to this that he scratched a child while he was playing, his owners lacked time to find him another home. At that time, Gander airport was the base of the Royal Rifles regiment and they decided to adapt it as a mascot and baptize it with the name of Gander. Those days of training for soldiers and games for Gander ended in October 1941 when the regiment and its mascot were sent to Hong Kong Island to protect it from Japanese attacks.
The tranquility on the island was short-lived. The Japanese landing was accompanied by an intense bombardment and the confrontation on the beaches turned into a hand-to-hand fight, where Gander became just another soldier. On December 19, 1941, the 1st Battalion Royal Rifles was cut off and the Canadians were barely able to respond to the brutal Japanese offensive. A grenade fell next to a group of wounded and Gander caught it in his mouth and ran... Gander's sacrifice saved his companions .
In just 18 days the island had fallen, but Gander's story began to circulate among Canadian soldiers locked up in prison camps... Gander became a legend . On October 27, 2000, Gander was posthumously awarded the Dickin Medal…
For saving the lives of Canadian soldiers during the Battle of Lye Mun on Hong Kong Island in December 1941. On three documented occasions “Gander”, the mascot of the Royal Rifles of Canada, faced the enemy […] In a last act of bravery, died picking up a grenade. Without "Gander's" intervention, many lives would have been lost.